P1: P1 USA: SVL Team lands A Deadly Catch

P1 USA SVL TEAM LANDS A DEADLY CATCH WITH TIME BANDIT SPONSORSHIP

June 24, 2010 - Buford, GA: Turnkey Marine has teamed up with Captains Jonathon and Andy Hillstrand, owners of the fishing vessel TIME BANDIT as seen on the #1 hit reality TV show the DEADLIEST CATCH, creating the TIME BANDIT race team.

Veteran world and national champion team owner Bob Mazikowski, along with Deadliest-Deckhand Travis Lofland, of Keith Colburn's fishing vessel the WIZARD, make up the crew of the 30 foot Phantom powerboat. They kicked off their season in Biloxi, MS in May.

"I thought that my experience in the waters of the Bering Sea fishing for crab would make the transition to a race boat easy," said Lofland. "But the adrenaline of competition at over 90 miles per hour is a completely different sensation, and I love it."

The boat will be branded as the Time Bandit for the remainder of the Super V Lite (SVL) schedule, and the team is prepping the boat for the next race.

"Bob and I are working hard to premier the boat next week at the 26th annual Superboat International (SBI) Suncoast Offshore Grand Prix in Sarasota, and can't wait to race in the Gold Cup in Detroit the following weekend," continued Lofland.

The SVL class representative, and owner of the SVL - IMCO Quality Marine Products, George Auriemma, Jr., introduced Lofland and Mazikowski; but, Lofland credits Tony Marcantonio for getting him hooked, with a ride at over 125 miles per hour in his boat Super Cat, JD Byrider.

"Boat racing is a lot like crabbing," says Lofland. "It's a team effort and if you work for the best, surround yourself by the best and with the right backing, hold on cause anything is possible. I'm really excited to race with the good people and great racers in the competitive SVL class."

The SVL class has defined itself as a premier class in the sport, with the largest fleet of boats at each event they enter. Their simple and consistent rules make the class highly competitive and attractive for new teams to get into the sport. Those traits earned the class the support of Powerboat P1 USA which provides support and international recognition through the American Powerboat Association (APBA) and the Union Internationale Motonautique (UIM).

-source: p1 usa